Good friends, good people comprise this class

Sometimes, records and statistics don’t tell the whole story.

For the four seniors on the University of Hawai‘i men’s basketball team, the game went beyond numbers.

UH seniors Nerijus Puida, Troy Ostler, Todd Fields and Lane O'Connor will take their final shots at home tomorrow. Cory Lum • The Honolulu Advertiser

"These guys became my best friends," said Nerijus Puida, one of the four seniors. "How can you measure that?"

You can’t. That is why coach Riley Wallace must be understood when he calls the Rainbows’ four seniors "a special group."

The four — Todd Fields, Lane O’Connor, Troy Ostler and Puida — will play their final home game in the Stan Sheriff Center tomorrow when the Rainbows play host to Texas Christian. They will each take a final shot during a ceremony after the game. Hawai‘i will close its regular season with two games on the road next week.

"It’s as good a group as you can get," Wallace said. "Outside of basketball, I never had one worry about any of them. They’re all good people, and that means a lot."

All four came into the UH program as juniors in 1999. Since then, they have formed an undeniable bond.

"From the day we met, we started hanging out, and we’ve been doing it ever since," said Ostler.

Their roles as Rainbow basketball players, however, couldn’t be more different.

Ostler, a 6-foot-10 post player, has emerged as the best player of the bunch. He entered the program as a rail-thin mid-range shooter, but he is now considered one of the top low-post threats, on offense and defense, in the Western Athletic Conference.

"There were a lot of questions about Troy’s ability when he first got here," Wallace said. "But he’s improved a whole lot since then, and he’s our most reliable player."

Puida, a 6-foot-5 small forward, has started all 53 games he has played as a Rainbow. His value is his versatility, as evidenced by his 8.8 points, 5.8 rebounds and 4.6 assists per game. Puida often defends the opposing team’s top scorer.

"It’s hard to find a player these days who doesn’t think scoring is everything," Wallace said. "But he truly has fun with the game other than scoring points."

Fields and O’Connor have discovered fun despite diminished roles. This season, their primary responsibilities were to imitate opposing post players during practice.

Fields, the team’s tallest player at 7 feet, overcame knee injuries just to make the UH roster.

The 6-foot-7 O’Connor, who was one of the best 3-point shooters in the California junior college system, was switched from the perimeter to the post as a Rainbow.

"And not a word from either of them," Wallace said. "They sacrificed some things to help this team. Players like that are as valuable as any in a program."

Not surprisingly, none of the four has a specific individual goal during Hawai‘i’s final three regular-season games. Instead, all four had the same response when asked what would be the best way to finish the season: win the WAC championship and play in the NCAA Tournament.

Perhaps Puida put it best: "I don’t care if I sit on the bench. If we get there, I’ll be happy."

Regardless of whether the Rainbows’ season continues after the WAC Tournament, their bond will.

"These are the kinds of friends I’ll stay in contact with the rest of my life," Ostler said.

NOTES: Freshman forward Phil Martin strained his left ankle during practice yesterday, and is questionable for tomorrow’s game. The starting power forward is averaging 9.4 points and 4.1 rebounds per game, and leads the WAC with a .642 field goal percentage. If he is not ready, Mindaugas Burneika will start in his place. . . . The entire team will stay on the court after tomorrow’s game for an autograph session.

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